The present invention relates to an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) apparatus, more specifically to an MRI apparatus which acquires magnetic resonance signals in combination with the spatial selective saturation.
In the MRI apparatus, magnetic resonance signals are acquired in combination with the spatial selective saturation when performing blood vessel imaging. More specifically, spatial selective saturation is performed at the upstream of the blood flow outside of the imaging area, prior to the signal collection for the imaging area (patent reference 1, for example).
[Patent reference 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 10(1998)-33498 (pp. 4-5, FIGS. 1-3)
For the spatial selective saturation, RF pulses for spin excitation and the gradient magnetic field pulses for spatial selection and killer are respectively used. When combining with the pulse sequence for the magnetic resonance signal collection, it is impossible for the integral value of the gradient magnetic field within 1TR (repetition time) to be 0.
For this reason, the pulse sequence as in the steady state free precession (SSFP), in which the gradient magnetic field integral value must be 0 within 1TR, may not perform the spatial selective saturation for 1TR.